Category: Poem

Legend has it that Ulysses founded Lisbon (originally called Ulyssippo) on his way back from the Trojan war.

The myth is recounted in the epic poem Os Lusiadas by Luís de Camões (c. 1524-1580), a poet of such great importance that Portuguese is often referred to as “the language of Camões”.

In more recent times, Fernando Pessoa (1988-1935), while recognising that the legend is untrue, argues at the same time that it is real because it exists in the minds of the people as one of the pillars of the Portuguese nation.